Hey I can pickup a 20# tank that's stamped 2/10 locally for $100, I'm going to get it this afternoon but wanted to see if I was missing something. Guy says it's full and the pic looks shiny and nice. Is there a chance it's filled with something else? A way to check? Is it kosher to put this thing in the trunk while I do some shopping (have to travel to meet him)? Anyways thanks for any help from a lurker.
Buying used CO2 tank?
- Thread starter atwebb
- Start date
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Hydro is good for 5 years from the stamp date, so should be good to go.
It would be smart to put it into a bucket and put a couple icepacks or a couple pounds of ice around it. You can definitely pop the burst disk if you get it over 100F.
schristian619
Well-Known Member
If you have any doubts about it, just take it a place that exchanges instead of filling. then you'll get one that you know is good. I did that with one I got off craigslist for $50. It had an expired stamp and everything, no questions asked.
dogtailale
Well-Known Member
Why in the trunk?
Whats wrong with the back seat?
Whats wrong with the back seat?
If it gets too hot, the relief valve may let go, filling the car with CO2. Not good if you're inside the car. Also, the pressure in those tanks would be enough to cause some damage if it let go.
To the OP, there isn't any way to fill the tank with anything other than what it's designed for, so you're good.
Clayton
Well-Known Member
i have driven around with a tank in my car tons of times. how long can you hold your breath 30 or 45 seconds , more than long enough to roll the windows down and pull over. plusit will NOT vent at 100f i have been in hundreds of restraunt kitches with CO2 tanks for soda and beer and in the summer time they got hotter than 120f
Clayton
Well-Known Member
how ever you best bet is to leave the tank in the car with the windows down when shoping and to put it in the trunk when driveing the best of both worlds.
dogtailale
Well-Known Member
How many service vans are on the road right now with welding tanks in them.
how many welding bottles are right now stored in the sun on black pavement
the back of a van and black pavement is a heck of cooler that the trunk of a car .
Ill eagle in some states to drive with a pressurized container in trunk of car also It MUST be straped
You got a point, but I'd feel safer having it out of the passenger compartment. I don't know what temp or pressure it takes to pop the disk, but it would make sense to keep it in the trunk. I don't know the legality of keeping tanks in the trunk either, I don't remember seeing it in any of my drivers manuals.
Also, what would happen if you got into an accident with the tank in the back seat? Even ignoring the pressure and what it could do, just having an empty 5 gallon tank could turn into a deadly flying object inside the car. How many people know how to properly secure a tank inside of their car? I believe that most would strap it with a seatbelt, if they bothered to strap it at all. That's fine for going around corners, braking, and maybe acceleration, but not the violence of an accident.
Also, what would happen if you got into an accident with the tank in the back seat? Even ignoring the pressure and what it could do, just having an empty 5 gallon tank could turn into a deadly flying object inside the car. How many people know how to properly secure a tank inside of their car? I believe that most would strap it with a seatbelt, if they bothered to strap it at all. That's fine for going around corners, braking, and maybe acceleration, but not the violence of an accident.
dogtailale
Well-Known Member
buy a truck
bja
Well-Known Member
Do you're shopping first then pick up the tank and go home. Or just don't go shopping.
check on the valve, if it is stamped "CGA 320", than it is C02. That is the Compressed Gas Association (CGA) designation for co2 to assure gasses dont get mixed up. Secure that cylinder!!! I work in the gas industry and see horror stories of accidents with cylinders on a daily basis. Best way to transport is in open air.
SweetSounds
Well-Known Member
Getting a tank hot can cause the relief to blow. We've heard the stories here. But it's got to take a LOT of heat right? I mean they drive truckloads of tanks around and they don't pop off in the sun. And my local exchange stores the full tanks in an outdoor cage in full sunlight on asphalt - And I'm sure they do the same thing in Nevada where it can clear 120...
If it is in the passenger compartment, and it did pop the relief, it's not going to shoot around the car. The relief has holes around it to disperse the gas in all directions so it doesn't create a rocket. Besides - The tank would likely be on its side - causing liquid CO2 to come out first.
I'll bet it makes one hell of a noise though! Which would no doubt alert you immediately to the escaping gas, causing you to pull over and roll down the windows.
If it is in the passenger compartment, and it did pop the relief, it's not going to shoot around the car. The relief has holes around it to disperse the gas in all directions so it doesn't create a rocket. Besides - The tank would likely be on its side - causing liquid CO2 to come out first.
I'll bet it makes one hell of a noise though! Which would no doubt alert you immediately to the escaping gas, causing you to pull over and roll down the windows.
bja
Well-Known Member
I've had a relief valve blow on a tank because it was overfilled. The tank was in my house sitting in a 16 x 22 room. The bottle emptied in a matter of 2-3 seconds and the room was filled with a cloud of co2. If this happened in a car, you would not be able to breath, but probably more importantly, you wouldn't be able to see anything until the fog cleared.
